Marianne Kearney, Jakarta – In a sign that the United States is renewing military ties with Indonesia, a Senate committee last week voted to restore a military assistance and training programme for the country's armed forces.

The Senate Appropriations Committee voted last Thursday to allocate US$400,000 to resume training with Indonesia under the International Military Education and Training programme.

The proposal is yet to be passed by the full Senate and the House of Representatives. A ban on weapons sales and other military assistance would still stand even if the committee's recommendation is accepted.

Analysts say the move – which comes despite criticism that the military has implemented few of the reforms demanded by the US Congress when it slapped the ban on in 1999 – is a reward for Indonesia's efforts in the war on terrorism.

"There is no question that this is a direct reward for Indonesian participation in the war on terror," said Mr Sidney Jones, the Jakarta director of the International Crisis Group, an international think-tank. "This has nothing to do with reform or even a strategic look at Indonesia, it is a direct pat on the back for the Indonesian army."

Observers believe that Indonesia's willingness to arrest and hand over an alleged Al-Qaeda operative to the US recently was seen as a sign that the Indonesian military and intelligence was prepared to cooperate with the US in the war on terror.

Congress suspended military ties with Indonesia in reaction to the Indonesian military sponsoring the post-ballot rampage in East Timor in September 1999.

Under the Leahy Amendment, Congress said full military ties with Indonesia were suspended until Indonesia brought to justice military personnel responsible for the carnage.

The International Crisis Group and other critics say despite the 1999 US congressional ban, the military has made scant attempts to reform itself. They say reforms, such as punishing human rights violators and reining in the military's corrupt and illegal business network, have stalled.

International relations analyst Rizal Sukma says the US wants to lift the ban on training programmes primarily out of frustration with the lack of high-level military contacts it has in the Indonesian military. "The US has realised since 1991 that the problem is that they do not have many generals they are close to."

Proponents of a resumption of assistance, such as Mr Rizal, argue that such a training programme would promote human rights and more progressive attitudes within the military. "The US is sending a message that this is not a blank cheque. The Indonesian military still has to do a lot of things on human rights," he said.

The Indonesian military and government has responded positively to the move, saying it marked a first step in full military-to-military relations. Major General Sudrajat of the Defence Department said the training programme would enhance the professionalism of the armed forces and their sense of democracy and civil society.

[On July 23, Reuters reported that US President George W. Bush called Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri to thank her for her efforts to combat terrorism. White House spokesman Ari Fleischer said the two leaders also talked about ways to improve US-Indonesian ties and Secretary of State Colin Powell's upcoming visit. Powell will stop in Indonesia during an eight-nation trip to Asia that starts on July 26 - James Balowski.]